


Take A Walk

by reyzul (MaK)



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-23
Updated: 2016-03-23
Packaged: 2018-05-28 12:55:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,419
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6330076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaK/pseuds/reyzul
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"You like a big, sweaty rock."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Take A Walk

**Author's Note:**

> idk wht this is im sry

When Malachite had finally been separated, it was, surprisingly, Lapis who was inconsolable. The only person she even bothered to properly look at and speak to was Steven, but even their relationship was on the cold of lukewarm at _best_. While she wasn't one for many emotional outbursts or too many tears, her seething silence and gloomy nature perpetuated throughout the entirety of the Crystal Gems. Pearl, having never been terribly optimistic in the first place, gave up rather quickly with attempting to befriend the water gem; she figured, easily, that Lapis would confront her if she wanted, but there was no point in Pearl expelling extra energy for someone who wasn't going to even acknowledge it properly or even disprove of it politely. Amethyst and Peridot, mainly for Steven's sake, kept up with the attempt to sooth Lapis' rage; Garnet, for the most part, didn't interfere too often, only stepping in when necessary, as was her usual modus operandi.

Pearl, having given up on the building that bridge, decided to turn to the other part of Malachite. Despite being just as cooped up as Lapis was and as far away from Homeworld as the rest of them, Jasper was, surprisingly, less of a problem than the silently fuming water gem. She was angry, of course, as that is a given with Jasper, but certainly more willing to communicate with the most of them - though, she wasn't quite on speaking terms with Peridot, after having figured out what happened between the smaller gem and Yellow Diamond. Pearl suspected, as well, that Jasper was having her own doubts about her loyalty to her planet's hierarchy; no one could blame her, really, as she wondered why she had been abandoned on Earth without any assistance or even, seemingly, any care from the Diamond Authority she had devoted so much of her life to. While Jasper was big, mean, and loud, Pearl was confounded to realize that the stronger, taller, and far more aggressive gem was actually quite smart. In fact, she was almost scarily intelligent. Jasper wasn't a technician or a mechanic in the sense that Peridot and Pearl were, but she was a strategist and relatively wise when it came to figuring out her surroundings and the people she was surrounded by. 

For Jasper, it was obvious to make a somewhat positive relationship with the Crystal Gems. They were traitors and worthless, pathetic, despicable, and just about every other terrifyingly tragic adjective in the book, but they were the only gems around and, really, Jasper had no choice in the matter.

She could have, in theory, ran away. It would've been easy, seeing as she was obviously stronger than a majority of the party present and escaping would be simple and swift. However, if she were to run off and flee these defective gems and their home on the sand, what would she do then? Keeping running and running and running around this dirtball? Await for Yellow Diamond to realize Jasper was terribly late on her mission and look into things a little - and, if on the off chance Yellow Diamond or her studious pearl ever did notice that Jasper's mission was running late, what were the odds they would really do much about it at all? They could send another ship or another gem to see what was happening, but that would be wasted power and, as any Homeworld gem knew, Yellow Diamond was known for her efficiency, not her sympathy. 

As it were, Jasper was simply stuck. 

Stuck on Earth with a bunch of traitorous gems she had no choice to befriend if she was ever going to figure out a way home or, at least, away from this damned planet; stuck on Earth with the benign combination of human and gem into the form of a chubby, small child that held Rose Quartz's gem but none of the power she had displayed in battler; stuck on Earth with a technician she had once been an escort for and a prisoner who had mentally tormented her under tons of water for months. 

Unlike Lapis, Pearl found, Jasper was quick to realize her situation and just as quick to deal with it sensibly. Not to suggest that Jasper was slightly okay with what was happening - because she wasn't, not at all - but, she knew what would work out best and, for her own sake, what needed to be negotiated. 

While Amethyst and Peridot attempted to crack a smile out of Lapis' stone cold glare, Pearl found it much easier to converse with Jasper. 

It was almost scary, actually.

After they had gotten past the obvious of the Crystal Gems, how Jasper shouldn't be here, and some of the awkwardness of Malachite, the two of them had a lot of common ground to work off of. Pearl, despite herself, was dying to know about Homeworld and what was happening up in the stars, light-years away from Earth, far beyond this solar system's flaming sun, and Jasper was all too happy to clue her in on the current affairs. Speaking of their planet of origin gave way to more conversational topics as they continued to go back and forth with their dialogue; Pearl would occasionally point out differences between Earth and Homeworld (there were quite a few) and Jasper would express interest, which would lead into Jasper becoming confused about the way things were conducted and why and, though it was a long-winded process a majority of the time, Pearl was happy to explain. 

It wasn't all natural, though. Pearl found herself in the same place she was in when Peridot had first begun to work with the Crystal Gems, back to being treated as a servant and a pretty thing to stand-by and hold doors open for the more important gems. She wondered, truthfully, if this was something she was going to have to go through with each and every Homeworld gem she encountered, and she was actually _thankful_ that Lapis wouldn't even bother speaking to her, because, at least, the blue gem couldn't treat her like she was subsidiary. 

This challenge, the challenged proposed by Homeworld's gem hierarchies and tiresome antics of autocracy, was certainly more of a mountain to climb with Jasper than it had been with Peridot. While the green gem had had half a mind to remind herself that she was, in reference to the totem pole in Homeworld society, not much higher of a rank than a pearl, Jasper was completely preoccupied with the idea that Pearl had to belong to _somebody_. 

She had figured that, since Rose Quartz had reformed into... well, Jasper didn't know _what_ Rose had changed into, but it wasn't _Rose_. But, since _Rose_ was now a small, chubby human named _Steven_ , Jasper assumed that Pearl didn't really belong to her - Rose - or him - Steven - anymore. Which was, for the most part, true, even though Pearl had decidedly devoted herself to protecting Steven and Earth, but she didn't want to give Jasper the wrong idea and suggest that she was still owned by anyone but herself. 

With what-was-once-Rose-Quartz cleared away, Jasper went down the line to figure out who Pearl could've belonged to. Peridot and Lapis were obviously off of the list, though the latter had potential to hold a pearl at her rank. Garnet, the _fusion_ , was obviously too much of mess, in Jasper's opinion, to have a pearl and Amethyst, being defective herself and born and raised on Earth, couldn't own a pearl in the first place. Anyone else, whether it be Greg or Mayor Dewey or one of the teenagers that hung around on occasion, were also out of the pickings - they were, after all, humans and were automatically lower than a gem and incapable of owning one.

Pearl had realized Jasper's conclusion long before the other gem did, but stomped that thought out before it could even leave Jasper's lips. "I don't _belong_ to anyone," she had repeated and not for the first time. "I haven't for a few thousand years and I certainly won't begin to be _your_ servant, so you can stop thinking of that right now," she had huffed and glared, but Jasper hadn't seemed to effected. 

After awhile, Jasper dropped the topic and the idea. Again, she was rather rational for someone who was prone to red-hot anger, and decided, " _Fine_. If you Earthlings want to have your backwards concepts of ownership it's _fine_." 

It was fine. Neither of them brought it up again.

After that mountain had been climbed and conquered, it was relatively smooth sailing from there on out. By this time, it had been three months since Malachite had been separated and Pearl was happy to note that her progress with befriending Jasper was far more noticeable than that of Amethyst's and Peridot's, who had still hardly gotten a word out of Lapis, even with some more help from Garnet and Steven. 

It wasn't much of a surprise, though. Everyone else got caught up with dismantling Lapis' hard exterior, hoping to break through her icy walls and finally see a smile or even hear the gem talk to anyone who wasn't Steven, so Pearl - who had given up on Lapis - and Jasper - who wanted nothing to do with Lapis - were left on their own, together.

The Crystal Gems had, decidedly, not told Jasper about the cluster. It was unlikely that she, like Peridot, would be enthusiastic about destroying something that Homeworld had put so much effort towards and the rest of the gems didn't want to risk Jasper attempting to sabotage their mission by destroying the drill or doing anything else considerably testy. Pearl, having been the one to get the closest to Jasper, was put on the job for keeping the gem preoccupied and in the dark about the project.

She wasn't happy about the decision, of course. She was one of the two technicians present and was having quite a time working on the intricacies of the drill, but Peridot had argued that they were almost done anyway and, really, Pearl's time was better spent making sure that a certain brutish warrior didn't come stumbling up to the bomb and go about dismantling all their hard work. While Pearl wasn't inclined to agree, Garnet and Amethyst sided with Peridot and, with a little push from Steven, Pearl eventually accepted. Her only argument was that she was a better technician than a conversationalist, to which everyone agreed, but she was closest to Jasper, so it only made sense that she were the one to be assigned to keeping the orange gem as far away from the project as possible, both in mind and in proximity. 

Pearl promised to do her best.

The time they would end up spending together, after all, was... well, bluntly, a lot. _A Lot_ of time spent together.

Neither Pearl or Jasper liked to sleep. While Pearl had originally suggested that Jasper could come into her room and the two of them could continue to talk and engage while everyone else was asleep, it was quickly realized that there was one thing Jasper did not want to be near: water.

So, they ended up walking around.

Past Beach City and, when the sun began to rise, they would turn around. All the while, Pearl and Jasper spoke. They had begun to leave the comfortable topics they usually danced around: the conversations about Homeworld and Earth had been exhausted and, eventually, they began to speak about themselves. Pearl was less inclined to do so, but was encouraged by Jasper's generally talkative nature, and, once the dam had been broken and the original flood began to fade, it all came out naturally and easily for the two of them.

For Pearl, their walks were a mighty learning experience. 

Jasper was, always and forever, a soldier. Fighting was what she was made for and she had no problem with talking about it, going on about the wars she had fought in when she was a thousand years younger and what she had seen, heard about, and the rumors that were spread around about other battles. Brute strength was one thing and, sure, Jasper had a lot of it, but knowledge was another and Jasper was just as well equipped. She was particularly witty and quick to make sarcastic remarks, which Pearl began to return in earnest, and possessed a wide field of general wisdom and impractical cognizance of military qualities. Being a soldier meant more than just fighting and strategy and brains came into play, with Jasper being a well-established professional to all of the above. It was what she was made for, after all. It was what she was meant to do, what she was meant to do for Yellow Diamond, though Jasper had begun to lose faith in the latter, she knew what she was all about.

Pearl could appreciate that and, overtime, understand it more on an empathetic level. While she couldn't relate to knowing who exactly she was and what she was all about, seeing as she was now impartial to being used for what she was made for, she could see the beauty behind the idea. In fact, she could see the beauty behind a lot of what Jasper had to say. Sure, it could come out through gritted teeth or poorly-worded phrasing, but there was practical meaning behind most of it and Pearl appreciated that.

More than she realized, really.

More than she was willing to admit, actually.

It was Amethyst who called her out on it. 

"Getting real _close_ with Jasper, huh, P?" she asked casually, save for the way she smirked devilishly at the end of her inquiry.

Pearl was unsure of how to respond. An automatic, "Yes," came out and she couldn't decide if she should regret it or not, despite it being - well, really - the truth.

They were... _close_...

At least, that was one way to phrase it.

Amethyst, though she had lost her patience with Lapis after the fifth month, occupied herself with Pearl's new friendship. Occupied being a synonym for meddled, as she did little in way of observing the tactics between the pearl and the jasper as much as she actually just pushed them closer together, often creating awkward situations and strained silences. 

"You like a big, sweaty rock." That was how Amethyst brought it up a second time, directly to Pearl, with absolutely no warning and no sugar-coating.

Pearl had groaned loudly. "I _do_."


End file.
